Social Media: A New Frontier in Franchise Development?

These days, social media is one of the key ways brands nurture relationships with their loyal customer bases. In a lot of ways, a brand's social media presence serves as an overall indicator of the health and strength of a brand. For a brand like Denny's, which has nearly 97 percent brand awareness and a 57-year history, most franchise candidates come to us with some experience with and affinity for the brand.

Most franchise concepts are built around the personality of the founder. Entrepreneurial lore is filled with stories of founders who open a business, incubate it for years, and after much trial and error, create a successful business.

The rules and methods for franchise sales are changing daily with the general public's increasing awareness of the economy, deficits, lending, the housing market, and more. As some of us "graybeards" can remember, this isn't the first time the rules have changed--and it won't be the last.

Two years of tight credit and reduced consumer spending not only have left many franchisees reeling, they've also put a serious crimp in their franchisors' royalty streams. We asked workout professionals and bankruptcy attorneys experienced in franchising what franchisors can do to help turn around their distressed franchisees--without spending precious funds or getting themselves into legal hot water.

Have you ever been gripped by buyer hesitation, fears, or remorse? Certainly for franchise candidates, the American Dream of owning a franchise is a huge commitment, especially in today's uncertain economy. We all witness this when Discovery Day transforms to "D-Day" for some very qualified candidates, who freeze realizing the ticking timer to sign contracts is just around the corner. Their check and signature will rearrange the lives of their spouse, kids, pets--not to mention their daily routines and social activities.

Shortly after the economic downturn descended upon us in 2008, we started seeing a few franchise brands begin to offer incentives to get units open. At the time, they were generally viewed as outliers. After all, the economy was at single-digit unemployment levels, and most business people were in denial of a long or deep recession.